Today we started the day off with a trip to the Spanish riding school. Yes, I know I am in Austria, but apparently the horses they use here are descendents of the Spanish horses brought over a long time ago. We just went to watch a practice, but it was more like a show. First they had the young horses come out for some basic maneuvers like walk, trot, and canter. Next they had the “air school” in which the riders led the horses from the ground through a series of jumps and kicks. For the third portion, there was a pas-de-deux, where two horses and riders performed a choreographed routine to music. Next there was a single rider, who walked behind the horse and led him through a series of movements and steps, and last they had the “horse ballet” which consisted of eight horses and riders, and was done to music.

After the riding school, we went to the house of music. It’s a pretty interesting museum with a good mix of exhibits. Many of the exhibits were about sound and how we experience it. There were bits about the physics of sound, hearing loss, visual representations of sound, etc. And then there were exhibits on musicians like Mozart, Beethoven, and Strauss, to name a few.

After a quick lunch and gelato break, we carried on to the giant ferris wheel. It’s an observation wheel like many cities have, and it makes for a nice way to see the city. It also happens to be right next to a permanent midway, so we went on the tallest swing ride I’ve ever seen.

To end the day, we needed to find some food for dinner, and find it we did. Near to where we are staying is a restaurant called Beer and Meat on Rails. The novelty here is that little trains run on tracks all through the restaurant and bring you your food and drinks! The food was delicious as well, so it was definitely worth a visit.